With help from Tom at AtlasPaintCompany, the front elevation gets freshened by some new paint; meanwhile Mike Malinowski AIA and Belal Siddiqui are on roof duty adding a water diverter and a new layer of ‘secret sauce’ at the dome. Spiffy outcome from some high (and rather scary) work; now it’s back to the computer boards .

At the Warehouse Artist Loft project, R street between 11th and 12th: Foundations for the “new building” for the pit include Auger Cast Piles and Micropiles; work continues; while rebar cages are waiting for placement and grouting. On the interior of the historic warehouse, some columns get a ‘haircut’ to prepare for the new pneumatically placed concrete shear wall that will become one part of the new seismic system. Copyright MFMalinowski AIA

This was a project for which we got to do two completed designs . first a spiffy simple contemporary . then the owner shifted gears and asked for a tuscan revival composition – with a couple of turrets please – for this 40 x 80 parcel. Voila.

. marks left by early occupants .

The ship’s ladder is the only way to get from floor to floor at the WAL – a little hair raising for those with fear of heights. From the fifth floor the adjacent site is like a mud puddle filled with tinker toy trucks and equipment . and the offloading of metal studs takes on an otherworldly character viewed through my camera lens, picking up the historic skylight above.

The torrential rainfall from Monday left the site rather a messy slog but foundation work continues in spite of the less than ideal working conditions. while interior walls take shape: the promise of more to come.

Work just began on another of our Historic Adaptive Reuse Projects – this one at 914 12th Street. Ridgeway Studios is a listed four story downtown historic hotel, that had been converted to an SRO rooming house about 30 years ago with 56 units; we are turning it into 21 apartments. It boasts among the few remaining bay window facades, with windows hanging handily over the property line into the alley – so low that they have often gotten hit by passing garbage trucks in the past. We’ve gotten City ok to set up a warning system to prevent those impacts . lots of demo is the beginning of a project like this. Materials are all sorted and stockpiled on site for separate pick up: wood, plaster, metal, electrical parts. An interesting discovery were tiny windows that were buried in some of the walls between bay windows – they used to be ventilation for drop down murphy beds; every square inch of space was used then. With few units, we are creating some needed elbow room. While the finished layout will still have very modest size units that are affordable, each will have their own kitchen and bathroom; and there will be some common area on the ground floor including a bike storage room, a game room and space for tenant service and management offices. Mike and Project Superintendent Jim Kennard

Designed some 22 years ago by Mike Malinowski AIA for a growing family, this Davis home is now ready for the next generation . SACMClientFull.pdf